Generational change is the most pressing issue in South Korean women’s soccer these days.
At the FIFA Women’s World Cup in July, only five members of the South Korean national team were members of the “century club,” which refers to players with more than 100 A-match appearances.
Players such as Ji So-yeon (Suwon FC) and Kim Hye-ri (Hyundai Steel) have been supporting Korean women’s soccer since the late 2000s and early 2010s, respectively.
However, the national team, led by these players, was knocked out of the group stage of the World Cup with one draw and two losses.
They were beaten by teams that were perceived as underdogs, such as Morocco and Colombia, and realized the gap between the world stage and Korea.
Of course, there is also a harvest from the World Cup. It was the discovery of Korea’s “youngest talent,” Casey Eugene Fair (R).
When she came on as a substitute against Colombia in the first round of the World Cup group stage, she set the record for the youngest appearance in World Cup history for both men and women. She was 16 years and 26 days old.
In the final game, against Germany, she was a surprise starter and played 86 minutes up front and was no match for Germany’s world-class players.
After the three-match World Cup, the pair made their first appearance for the national team and played their fourth A match on Saturday in the first match of Group B of the second Asian qualifying round for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Xiamen Eaglet Stadium in Fujian Province, China.
Fair, who started in place of incumbent Hwa-yeon Son (Hyundai Steel), repaid head coach Colleen Bell’s faith in her by scoring the opening goal in the 33rd minute.
Born to an American father and Korean mother, this was the first goal Fair scored in a South Korean national team uniform.
In doing so, she became the second-youngest player in South Korean soccer history (16 years, 119 days) to score in an A-match. The previous record holder was Ji So-yeon (15 years, 282 days), who rattled the net against Taiwan at the 2006 Doha Asian Games.
Paire added goals in the 11th and 21st minutes of the second half to complete her hat trick.
According to the Korea Football Association, Paire is a dual citizen. He was a highly touted prospect in the United States, earning a call-up to the U-15 national team last year, but chose to play for South Korea.
By playing for South Korea at the World Cup, she is no longer eligible to play for another country under FIFA rules. For South Korea’s women’s soccer team, it’s a big step forward in securing a solid striker.
In addition to Paire, Cheon Garam (KSPO) also scored a hat trick in the match.
Born in 2002, Cheon is one of the top prospects in the WK League.
Starting on the left flank, Cheon made her presence felt as she exploded for three goals, moving between the midfield and attacking areas.
Chun was also identified by Coach Bell as the future of Korean women’s soccer.
In the World Cup final against Germany, a must-win game, Chun started up front, as did Paer, and showed off her agility and darting runs against larger defenders.
Chun had been touted as one of the top prospects in women’s soccer before Paire joined the national team. At the end of last year, she was named the WK League’s No. 1 rookie of the year.
On July 31, at Belo Horizonte’s training camp at Campbelltown Stadium outside Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, it was clear that Chun was feeling the competition from Paire.
Even after the main players left the field after stretching, the candidates repeated the 70-meter sprint several times. Most of the time, Pair came out on top, and Chen was furiously chasing after him.
Afterward, Chun told reporters, “If you want to be the last, you have to run harder. I wanted to push my body, and I wanted to show that I was always well-prepared, so I worked hard,” he said, revealing his competitive spirit.
Behind the duo’s strong performances, Belo Horizonte thrashed Thailand 10-1.
Kang Chae-rim (Hyundai Steel), one of the younger strikers in the squad, also scored a multi-goal game, much to the delight of Bell, who has a generational change in mind.
Kang Chae-rim (Hyundai Steel), one of the younger strikers in the squad, also scored a multi-goal game, much to the delight of Bell, who has a generational change in mind. 토토사이트